When Should Kids Start Looking at Colleges?

The Planning Stage

So when is the ideal time to turn your sights on college? Many seem to agree that the start of junior year should also start your child's college search.

This is the time when standardized tests such as the SAT or ACT should be taken. During this year, you might also look into college summer programs for high school students that your child can participate in during the summer before their senior year.

Junior year is also not too early to visit some college campuses. If your child is planning on going away to college, but it's not possible to visit a campus out of state, tour a few local colleges instead. Allow your child to tour the dorm rooms to get a feel for what living away from home might be like.

If your child can narrow their college choices down to two or three institutions, great. You can then look into the admissions requirements for each school and get an idea of what each college or university is looking for. The college admissions process can be quite extensive so anything you can do to get a jump on that process is beneficial.

The Early Worm...

From an academic standpoint, your child should understand that good grades are important when it comes to applying to college. While eighth grade may be a bit too young to focus entirely on higher education, you can encourage your child to start doing some things that could affect the process later.

Kids should begin to develop good study habits in middle school. Now, too, is the time they might begin to think about a career. If they seem as if they've decided about what they want to do in life, now is the time to start exploring the type of courses they should plan on taking in high school.

At this age, you might encourage your child to join school clubs, participate in sports or do some volunteer or community work and continue through high school. These types of activities look great on a college application.

Under Pressure

There seems to be little benefit to getting your child to focus on college at too young an age. Some feel that starting to talk too much about college during a child's middle school years can add undue pressure throughout high school.

And quite honestly, few 13- or 14-year olds really know exactly what they want to do in life. Making a choice about college is a major decision and they simply might not be up for the task. If they're forced to do so at too young an age, they might make the wrong decisions that will affect them later.

About the only thing you need to do to prepare your younger child for college is to start saving for tuition. When it comes to that, 'it's never too early' definitely applies. In fact, planning to pay for a college education could begin the day your child is born!